LET trio take spots in #WomensAusOpen field

12 Feb 2019

Tonje Daffinrud. Credit: Getty Images

Three Ladies European Tour players have played their way into the field for the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open through qualifying today.

Jenny Haglund, 26, from Sweden, who won her first LET tournament last year, shot 69 in windy and difficult conditions to lead the qualifiers on the east course at The Grange, along with 37-year-old American Beth Allen, a regular visitor to Australia who has won three times in Europe.

The third spot available came down to a playoff but was seized by 27-year-old Norwegian Tonje Daffinrud, a former University of Denver scholarship holder who also has played regular golf in Australia.

Eighty players teed it up in a last-ditch bid to find a start in the 144-player field on Thursday morning.

Queenslander Eunice Kim had a personal highlight when she holed-in-one on the par-three 12th hole with a six-iron.

The Open field has a strong international flavour with the likes of Thailand’s Jutanugarn sisters, England’s Georgia Hall, defending champion Jin-Young Ko from South Korea and a cluster of Americans including brilliant young professional Nelly Korda and Emma Talley.

Four of the top 10 players on the world rankings are playing in the $US1.3 million tournament headed by world No. 7 Minjee Lee from Perth, Australia’s top-ranked player and a winner of four tournaments on the LPGA Tour.